Attachment for drill presses or the like



Oct. 22, 1946. Y R 'A 2,409,706

ATTACHMENT FOR DRILL PRESSES OR THE LIKE Filed Sept. 22, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet l w m; i7; 20 2a a 1 B 2 3/ 1: o x/ 28 Joseph! A. Esp/M.

0a. 22, 1946. 4 J. L. REPPA 2,409,706

ATTACHMENT FOR DRILL PRESSES OR THE LIKE Filed Sept. 22, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Oct. 22, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,409,706 ArrscnMENr ron l i l t l pln BRESSES on THE Joseph I]. Rcppa, Chicago, n1. Application September 22, 1944, Serial No. 555,211

6 Claims. 1

My invention is in connection with rotary spindle machines for drilling, tapping, or performing other work on work pieces, and relates particularly to an improved and simplified attachment for such machines for aligning and holding the work pieces during the rotary or axial movement of the tools.

An important object of my invention is to provide a simple attachment which may be readily applied to existing drill presses or the like and which is adjustable for the size and shape of work pieces and for guiding the work pieces accurately into proper position for the performance of work thereon and to hold them against rotary or lateral" displacement while the work i being performed thereon andwhile the tools are being withdrawn. 1

Another object of the invention is to provide a simple attachment which can be readily applied to the column of a drill press or the like above a work supporting table on the column to hold the work pieces in properposition on the table for operation thereon. r

A further object is to provide an attachment in the form of an arm adjustably mounted on the column above the work supporting table and terminating in a head parallel with the table and provided with adjustable abutment member fordefining a recess for receiving the work pieces and for holding them against lateral displacemerit on the table during drilling orother operation thereon.

Another object is to provide an attachment having a plurality of elements thereon adjustable to define a recess or space into which work pieces may be inserted in proper position on the work table for drilling or other operation and to be rigidly held against displacement during such operation.

The above referred to and other features of my invention are shown embodied in the structure on the drawings; which drawings:

Figure l is a side elevation of a drill press with my attachment applied thereto;

Figure 2 is an enlarged section on plane II- II of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an enlarged section on plane III-I'll of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an underside view of the endof the attachment;

Figure 5 is a section on plane V:V of Figure 4';

Figure 6 is an enlarged perspective view of one form of guide and abutment fingers; and

Figure 7 is a perspective of another form of guide and abutment elements.

Figure 1 shows a conventional type of drill ress comprising the base ID with a cylindrical column ll rising therefrom and supporting at its upper end the drill press head assembly I2 in which the tool supporting spindle I3 is axially shiftable and is rotatable by the motor M, a work table I5 being supported on the collar [6 vertically adjustable on the column I I in a well known manner.

My improved attachment comprises a downturned arm ll extending from a clamp member l8 which, with the complementary clamp member Hi, will adjustably clamp the attachment to the column I! above the work table l5. At its outer end the arm I1 carries a head which is shown in rectangular plate form and which may be integral with the arm ll, this plate being parallel with the work table I5. The plate has the passageway 29 therein through which the tool, such as, a drill X supported by the spindle 13; may pass for application to work pieces held between'the plate and the table.

Adjustably mounted on the head 20 are a plurality of aligning and holding elements such as A and B, the elements A being shown as of L-shape and the elements B as to T-shape. Each element comprises a rectangular supporting bar 22;, and these bars are received and are adjustable in rectangular channels 23 shown as extending transversely across the bottom of the head 23. In alignment with these channels the head has, the slots 2% through which screws 25 are extended for engagement in the threaded holes 26 in the bars, so that after adjustment of the bars they may be rigidly held in set position. I have shown the attachment set for receiving and. holding work pieces W in the form of rectangular plates which are to be drilled The bars of the aligning and holding members A terminate at their outer ends in aligning and holding fingers 21 which depend therefrom and extend therefrom at right angles, while the aligning and hold I 5, the work piece may be moved into position on the table between the fingers for transverse alignment thereof for the drilling operation. For aligning the work piece longitudinally for the desired drilling operation thereon an abutment element 29 is provided. This element is shown in the form of a cylindrical bar which is received at its inner end in the transverse bore 30 provided in the arm ll adjacent the head 26. The outer end of the bar 29 is reversely bent to provide a foot 3| against which the inner edge of the work piece will abut when it is in proper longitudinal alignment for the drilling operation. The inner portion of the bar is parallel with the head 20 and the bar can be rotated and shifted axially in the bore 30 to bring the foot end- 3| thereof into the proper abutment position for the work piece, and then the bar is locked in the set position as by means of a set screw 32 threading through the arm l'l. Now, work pieces may be inserted one after the other into position on the table l between the holding and abutment elements for drilling thereof at the desired point, and during the drilling operation the work pieces will be held against displacement and also while the drill or other tool is being withdrawn. A'

multiplicity of work pieces may thus be quickly and accurately and safely drilled or otherwise operated on. The drills or other tools, after passing through the work pieces, will enter passageway 33 usually provided in the work table I5, through which passageway the material removed from the work pieces will drop. All the aligning, holding and abutment elements for the work pieces are mounted on the attachment I l which may be readily swung out of service position when its services are not required and which can be readily swung into service position to cooperate with the table to receive and hold the work.

Although I have shown an attachment adapted for holding work pieces of rectangular shape, it is evident that, by changing the shape of the aligning and holding elements, the attachment will serve to hold work pieces of different shapes or contours. Other changes and modifications could also be made without departing from the scope of my invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A holding attachment for drill presses or the like comprising an arm having clampin means at one end for adjustable clamping to the drill press above the drill press work support and terminating in a head, said head havin transverse channels in its lower side and having slots therethrough in alignment with said channels, bars in said channels terminating at their ends in fingers, screws extending through said slots for engagement with said bars for setting of said bars in adjusted position with their fingers forming aligning abutments for side edges of a work piece to hold the work piece against transverse displacement during a drilling or other operation thereon, said arm having a transverse bore therethrough, and a bar received at one end in said bore and at its other end providing an abutment foot for engagement by one end of a work piece when inserted between said fingers whereby the work piece will then be held on the work support against displacement during drilling or other operation thereon.

2. A holding attachment for drill presses or the like comprising an arm having clamping means at one end for adjustable clamping to the drill press above the drill press work support and terminating in a head, said head having transverse channels in its lower side and having slots therethrough in alignment with said channels, bars in said channels terminating at their ends in fingers, screws extending through said slots for engagement with said bars for setting of said bars in adjusted position with their fingers forming aigning abutments for side edges of a work piece to hold the work piece against transverse displacement during a drilling or other operation thereon, said arm having a transverse bore therethrough adjacent said head, a cylindrical bar received at one end in said bore and having its other end bent to provide an abutment, said bar being rotatably and axially adjustable in said bore to position said abutment for engagement by the end of a work piece when inserted between said fingers whereby said work piece will then be in the desired position for drilling or other operation and will be rigidly held against displacement during such operation, and means for holding said abutment bar in its set position.

3. A device for centering a workpiece on a drill press table and holding it against displacement during machining, comprising an arm swingable 0n the drill press post and secured thereto above the table, said arm carrying a fixed head at its free end to be applied over a workpiece on the table, a plurality of bars endwise slidable in said head in parallelism, said bars having depending fingers engageable with margins of a workpiece on the table and adapted to rest on the table, the horizontal lengths of said fingers being greater than the widths of said bars, some of said bars being reversed with respect to others to position some of the fingers against one margin of the workpiece and other fingers against an opposite margin of the workpiece, another bar mounted in said arm and endwise movable therein at right angles to the direction of movement of said first mentioned bars to engage a margin of the workpiece in substantially ninety degree relation with respect to the engagement of the fingers of said first mentioned bars with the workpiece.

4. A work holding attachment for a drill press or the like having a work supporting table, comprising an arm having clamping means at one end for adjustable clamping to the drill press above the supporting table and having a head at the oher end overlying the supporting table, means carried by said head for engaging two opposite sides of a workpiece on said table, said means comprising a plurality of parallel endwise movable bars mounted in said head and movable transversely thereof, the outer ends of said bars terminating in fingers downturned with respect to the bar lengths and with the horizontal lengths of said fingers greater than the horizontal widths of said bars, said bars being so disposed in said head that the finger of at least one of said bars will engage one side margin of a workpiece and the finger of at least one other bar will engage the opposite side margin of the workpiece, and means for securing said bars to said head with their fingers in engagement with the side margins of the workpiece, said fingers resting on said supporting table when said attachment is set for use.

5. A work holding attachment for a drill press or the like having a Work supporting table, comprising an arm having clamping means at one end for adjustable clamping to the drill press above the supporting table and having a head at the other end overlying the supporting table, means carried by said head for engaging the opposite sides of a workpiece on said table in holding engagement, means for providing a stop to engage an end of the workpiece on the supporting table, said last means comprising a rod mounted for axial and rotative movement in said arm and having its outer end reversely bent toprovide a foot to engage the adjacent end of the workpiece which is supported on said table and underneath said head, rotative movement of said rod in said arm permitting vertical adjustment of its foot with respect to the height of the workpiece, and means for securing said rod in adjusted position in said arm.

6. A work holding attachment for a drill press or the like having a work supporting table, comprising an arm having clamping means at one end for adjustable clamping to the drill press above the supporting table and having a head at its other end overlying the supporting table, means for engaging two opposite sides of a workpiece on said table comprising a plurality of parallel endwise movable bars mounted in said head and movable transversely thereof, the outer ends of said bars terminating in fingers downturned with respect to the bar lengths and with the horizontal lengths of said fingers greater than the horizontal widths of said bars, said bars being so disposed in said head that the finger of at least one bar will engage one side margin of the workpiece and the finger of at least one other bar will engage the opposite side margin of the workpiece, means for securing said bars to said head with their fingers in tight engagement with the side margin of the workpiece, means for providing a stop to engage an end of the workpiece on said table, said last means comprising a rod mounted for axial and rotative movement in said arm and having its outer end reversely bent to provide a foot to engage the adjacent end of the workpiece which is supported on said table underneath said head, and means for securing said rod in adjusted position in said arm.

JOSEPH L. REPPA. 

